On Sunday, March 21, 2010, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Senate healthcare reform bill, as well as the reconciliation language that made changes to that healthcare reform bill. Now that the Senate healthcare bill has been passed by both the House and Senate, it will become law as soon as it is signed by President Obama.
The next step is for the Senate to take up the "fixer" reconciliation language (bill ), which will begin this week. The passage of the reconciliation bill in the Senate could be completed as early as this week, or it could last for weeks or months. We will keep you informed of new developments.
In the meantime, we want to provide further insight into what is in the Senate bill now, and have provided the following sided by side comparison of provisions in both bills:
Effects on Employers
Summary of Health Care Reform Reconcililation
Again, subject to what happens in the Senate with the reconciliation bill, there may be some changes in the Senate bill timeline based on what is included in the final reconciliation language.
Below is a brief summary of some specific provisions of the reconciliation bill:
- FSAs: Delays the effective date of the $2,500 cap on contributions to flexible spending accounts (FSAs) from January 2011 to January 2013.
- No changes to the Over-the-Counter (OTC) provisions included in the Senate bill
- High-Cost Plan Excise Tax: Delays high-cost plan excise tax until 2018.
- Increases the thresholds for single and family coverage to $10,200 for single coverage and $27,500 for family coverage
- Excludes stand-alone dental and vision plan
- Medicare Part D: $250 "rebate" for all Medicare Part D enrollees who enter the "doughnut hole" coverage gap in 2010
- Penalties: Reduced the flat penalty for individuals who opt not to buy health coverage
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